What’s Up Wednesdayis a weekly meme that helps readers and writers touch base with blog friends. If you’d like to join in, you can find the link widget on Jaime’s and Erin’s blog posts. I love this idea because it gives a structured, easy way for me to keep up with blogging. Also, the buttons are cute. Thanks for the idea, Jaime and Erin!

What I’m ReadingLast week I read Just One Year in just one day. I loved getting to see the other side of the story; I’ll say nothing else because I don’t want to spoil anything. Then I lucked into an ARC of Nikki Loftin’s Nightingale’s Nest. It’s beautiful and unique and haunting, and I’m savoring every word.

What I’m Writing Still doing odds and ends for the business side of writing. When I’m not doing that, I am playing around with a new idea. This is a project I’d maybe like to work on for NaNo in some form. I guess for now I’m treating it more like a writing exercise and less like a WIP, if that makes sense. Sometimes you need space to play with words in order to work with them.

What Inspires Me Right Now I had the day off on Monday, so I went up to the Bronx Zoo. A lot of little kids were running around in their adorable Halloween costumes. Dime-store capes and some face paint are all it takes to let them create adventures for themselves. It’s always fun to see children being imaginative and playful, and I find the creativity surrounding Halloween really inspiring–that’s probably why it’s one of my favorite holidays. (Also the candy. Mmm, candy. I think I might actually get trick-or-treaters this year, so I have an excuse to stock up.)

What Else I’ve Been Up To Last Friday I went to Alison Cherry’s launch party for her debut, Red! It was at the lovely BookCourt in Brooklyn, and it was a fabulous time.

And in other news, there’s a Goodreads ARC giveaway for When Audrey Met Alice going on right now. You can sign up here!

20 Responses to What’s Up Wednesday 10/16

I look forward to reading Red. I follow Allison on Twitter and she seems totally lovely. I lived in Brooklyn for two years, and never made it to the Bronx Zoo. I was, admittedly, a little scared on the Bronx, and it was far from me, but someday I hope to go.

I love Halloween too! We’re moving that day, so we won’t get to enjoy it as much as I’d like. Though, I was kind of thinking it might be fun to move while wearing costumes. Might have to pitch that to those helping us. 😉 Hooray for new ideas! I totally get what you mean about treating it like a writing exercise and not a WIP. I think as soon as you attach the term WIP to a project, it takes on bigger and sometimes scarier implications. Sometimes it’s nice just to play around with something and see where it goes without all the pressure. 🙂

Your trip to the zoo sounds awesome! We love Halloween around here — my daughter already has her costume and is all fired up about trick-or-treating. As you know from my WUW post, I was a big fan of JUST ONE YEAR. The fact that you read it in a day makes me think you were too. 🙂 Best of luck with your new project!

I wish I had JUST ONE YEAR to read but it doesn’t come out here until next month! Luckily I’ve avoided spoilers so far and only heard good things about it, so I’m really looking forward to it (although I didn’t *love* JOD, so I’m hoping Willem wins me over).

Also, this–> “Sometimes you need space to play with words in order to work with them.” Exactly what I was trying to say in my post but in a much more eloquent manner 🙂